My Fine Fellow: Chapters 8–11

by Jennieke Cohen
In this twist on the musical My Fair Lady that was inspired by George Bernard Shaw's play Pygmalion, Helena Higgins and Penelope Pickering, students at 19th-century London's Royal Academy of Culinaria Artisticus, disagree on whether transforming street vendor Elijah Little into a gentleman chef is a worthwhile project.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–3, Chapters 4–7, Chapters 8–11, Chapters 12–15, Chapter 16–Epilogue
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. bigoted
    blindly and obstinately attached to some creed or opinion
    He’d been lucky that the girls hadn’t witnessed the bigoted vendor’s comments that day.
  2. tome
    a large and scholarly book
    They’d also loaned him tomes on everything from menu planning and timing to more modern theories of flavor enhancement, which Helena now expected him to read in his spare time.
  3. bluster
    vain and empty boasting
    She seemed glad that her parents let her do as she pleased, not irked that they weren’t here paying attention to her. Was it all bluster?
  4. opulent
    rich and superior in quality
    Elijah had thought the room he’d been sleeping in upstairs rather grand because it was clean and the bed lump-free, but this room with its wide four-poster bed, large wardrobe that matched the bed’s dark wood, and spindly-legged writing desk and chair tucked in a corner by the window was nothing short of opulent.
  5. cusp
    the point of transition when something happens or changes
    As galling as Pierce’s frowns and insinuations that Elijah always hovered on the cusp of some bad behavior felt, if sleeping next door gave the butler some peace of mind, so be it.
  6. patina
    a fine coating of oxide on the surface of a metal
    The brass mezuzah was neither ornate nor particularly eye-catching—in fact, the metal had acquired a dark, tarnished patina over the years—but it was one of his parents’ few belongings Elijah had taken pains to keep safe.
  7. tentative
    hesitant or lacking confidence; unsettled in mind or opinion
    When he pulled the door open, Penelope’s tentative smile greeted him.
  8. gainsay
    take exception to
    Helena's butler, Pierce, was less pleased, but he cannot gainsay the marquess.
  9. surmise
    imagine to be the case or true or probable
    Helena, as you might surmise, is something of a taskmaster, but Mr. Little rarely bats an eye at her demeanor—even at times when I find her unreasonable.
  10. versed
    thoroughly acquainted through study or experience
    He was already well versed in pie and pastry making, so teaching him laminated pastry and more difficult cakes and confectionary has proceeded much faster than I anticipated.
  11. nonplussed
    filled with bewilderment
    I suspect Helena feels the same, though she always pretends to be nonplussed at his progress.
  12. repertoire
    the range of skills in a particular field or occupation
    Nanay, I've also taught him most of the rice dishes in my repertoire (as Helena continues to find rice to be rather lowly—though she eats risotto and paella readily enough when they're on the table), and although he was surprised when I first showed him plain, unadulterated rice as you make it, he soon gobbled it up and has been experimenting with more Eastern-inspired rice dishes and desserts and puddings ever since.
  13. extrapolate
    gain knowledge of by generalizing
    I taught him your bibingka recipe and he's been extrapolating from there.
  14. apprise
    inform somebody of something
    I shall write again to apprise you of our progress and let you know how Lady Rexborough reacts to our charge.
  15. bolster
    a pillow put across a bed underneath the regular pillows
    The plush dark velvet cushions had been stuffed in ways to conform to the body, including two bolsters protruding on either side of his head.
  16. prodigious
    great in size, force, extent, or degree
    “He took his pride and joy—which he built from scratch with a design consultant—to the Continent. You wouldn’t believe how very comfortable it is, Pen. One can barely feel the road at all. And besides the footrests that come out from under the seats, it has a table that comes out of the floor and a small icebox for storing food. Oh, he’s prodigiously proud of it,” she pronounced with a smile.
  17. moue
    a disdainful grimace
    Helena made a moue with her lips for comic effect. “And miss all this? Are you mad?”
  18. discourse
    extended verbal expression in speech or writing
    Your speech continues to improve, but keep any discourse that is not food-related to a minimum.
  19. imposing
    impressive in appearance
    He’d been more than a little overawed as they’d driven up the tree-shielded road that opened to reveal Helena’s grandmother’s imposing dower house with a grand Palladian façade, and even more so when he’d seen the vast kitchen, which was nearly double the size of the kitchen at Number 9, Cavendish Square.
  20. emanate
    proceed or issue forth, as from a source
    He didn’t see much resemblance between the dowager and her granddaughter—except the stately air that seemed to emanate off them like an expensive scent.
  21. braised
    cooked by browning in fat and then simmering
    “To continue with the Italianate theme, I’ve prepared braised artichokes with basil sauce, risotto with courgettes and green grape tomatoes, salad of cos leaves dressed with anchovies and olive oil, yeasted fritters coated in parmesan cheese and wrapped in prosciutto, and a cold melon soup.”
  22. mortification
    strong feelings of embarrassment
    A blanket of mortification settled over him, setting his ears and neck aflame.
  23. recrimination
    mutual accusations
    If they were about to realize who he was, they might as well do it when he was out of the room. Far better not to hear the recriminations—and any slurs if they were coming—until they were back in the carriage and away from the dowager and her footmen.
  24. brusque
    rudely abrupt or blunt in speech or manner
    “He has talent, but his presentation lacks showmanship. His manners are brusque, and his food lacks finesse.”
  25. tangible
    perceptible by the senses, especially the sense of touch
    This quiet, expressionless young man before her seemed like a shadow of his former self—real, yet somehow neither crisp nor tangible.
  26. scrutiny
    the act of examining something closely, as for mistakes
    His eyes roamed over her face, as though looking for signs of her mixed lineage. She’d endured such scrutiny before, but coming from him, it didn’t feel like she was being judged.
  27. prevalence
    the quality of being widespread
    In their Ethnography of Cuisines seminar in their second year at the Royal Academy, they’d learned that the prevalence of pork in Spanish cuisine had been adopted in the middle ages as a way to root out “hidden” Jews or those who had converted to Christianity but still clung to their Jewish traditions.
  28. blight
    something that spoils, destroys, or impairs
    She knew certain people disliked the Jewish London magnates for their pursuit of wealth, and that many considered the poor Jews of the street who eked out a living as peddlers and old-clothes men a blight on society—conveniently ignoring the fact that there was an equal, if not greater, number of Christian poor doing the same.
  29. berate
    censure severely or angrily
    Penelope had stood by her because she knew Helena never intended anyone ill. She simply wanted others to take Culinaria as seriously as she. Surely that was why she had spent last night berating Elijah?
  30. candid
    openly straightforward and direct without secretiveness
    “Well...to be candid, that suits me quite well. I have any number of tasks I attend to before breakfast, so if it's of no inconvenience—”
  31. integral
    existing as an essential constituent or characteristic
    It seemed such an obvious sentiment to her that the idea of Helena never telling him something similar—something so integral to his future success—took her aback.
  32. pensive
    deeply or seriously thoughtful
    He smiled at her again, but this time it was a different smile. Something altogether more pensive. Penelope wondered, not for the first time that day, what he was thinking.
  33. foray
    an initial attempt
    “We’ve been training you to act like a gentleman, Mr. Little, and your first foray on the culinary stage should be as such,” Helena stated.
  34. admonition
    cautionary advice about something imminent
    His torso stiffened, but Penelope had noticed that lately he’d been listening to Helena’s admonitions that he use his height to full advantage.
  35. aloof
    distant, cold, or detached in manner
    Yes, with the aloof bearing he usually adopted around Helena, he could easily pass as a gentleman, but that was beside the point.
  36. zeal
    excessive fervor to do something or accomplish some end
    “Poppycock! What we’re doing now hasn’t been done either, but it hasn’t stopped us—or Mr. Little—from trying. I don’t see what’s to stop him from being whatever he wishes.” She smiled broadly at both of them, and Penelope couldn’t deny that her zeal was catching.
  37. arcane
    requiring secret or mysterious knowledge
    Currently, gentlemen chefs don’t own culinary shops because they perceive that engaging in trade would somehow lower their standing in society—an arcane way of thinking left over from the Georgian age.
  38. condescending
    characteristic of those who treat others with arrogance
    Helena might have grown accustomed to the idea of Penelope’s parents, and even said condescendingly nice things about some of Penelope’s mother’s recipes, but he had little doubt that being Jewish would be an entirely different matter.
  39. contemptible
    deserving of scorn or disrespect
    But the intolerance that always set his head spinning and brought a raw lump to his throat was seeing people’s reactions when they heard the word “Jew.” In the eyes of many, the word itself was linked to vulgarity, degradation, and a cunning nature, all of which they considered contemptible.
  40. censure
    harsh criticism or disapproval
    Yet, there was no escaping the censure if you had a Jewish name or looked as those people expected Jews to look.
Created on Wed May 03 12:56:58 EDT 2023 (updated Mon May 08 09:25:43 EDT 2023)

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